NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-15-2024 5AM EST

Episode Date: November 15, 2024

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Support for this podcast and the following message come from Autograph Collection Hotels, with over 300 independent hotels around the world, each exactly like nothing else. Autograph Collection is part of the Marriott Bonvoy portfolio of hotel brands. Find the unforgettable at autographcollection.com. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dave Mattingly. President-elect Donald Trump says he plans to nominate North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum to be Secretary of the Interior. As NPR's Kirk Sigler reports, Burgum is likely to usher in a dramatic shift in energy policy on federal lands. A billionaire software developer, Governor Burgum mounted a brief campaign for

President before dropping out of the primary and throwing his support behind Trump. Burgum is known as a big booster of oil and gas drilling, though his state's boom has mostly occurred on private land. Historically, Interior Secretaries have generally come from Western states with large tracts of federal public land. North Dakota is only about 4% federally owned. If confirmed, Burgum is expected to push for more oil and gas and coal development on public lands, while likely moving to reverse the more conservation and renewable energy focus of the Biden administration

and his current Interior Secretary, Deb Haaland, the nation's first Indigenous cabinet member. Kirk Ziegler, NPR News, Boise. Donald Trump is also nominating Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head the Department of Health and Human Services. If confirmed by the Senate Kennedy would oversee nearly two trillion dollars in mandatory spending and agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration. NPR Stephen Fowler says Kennedy is a vaccine skeptic who's promoted conspiracy theories

about health care. If he's confirmed by the Senate, the role gives Kennedy the chance to actualize a vision that's often at odds with mainstream health and science, likely through a combination of scaling back existing programs and refocusing others to align with his quote, make America healthy again goals. He told NPR that the government isn't going to take away vaccines from anybody But said the science on vaccine safety has huge deficits Vaccine experts disagree with that assessment

Lawmakers in Ohio have approved legislation that restricts the use of school bathrooms by transgender students Karen Kassler with Ohio Public Media says the governor is expected to sign that bill. The ban requires public and private, primary and secondary schools to designate bathrooms and facilities for the exclusive use of either males or females. Republican Senate President Matt Huffman says it's about safety and security. I think that that this bill in fact protects the rights of most people. The bill will threaten students' mental and physical health, according to LGBTQ activists

such as Morgan Zickus with the group Equality Ohio. Trans students want a fair chance to succeed in school and these bills make that harder. Eleven other states have some form of a bathroom ban. At least four have been challenged in court. Those 11 states in Ohio all voted for Republicans in last week's election. For NPR News, I'm Karen Kessler in Columbus. Wall Street futures are lower this morning. This is NPR News. Smithfield Foods has agreed to pay $2 million to settle claims it violated child labor laws at a plant in Minnesota.

A state investigation found the company employed at least 11 children at its plant in St. James over a two-year period that ended in April of last year. Smithfield denies knowingly hiring anyone under the age of 18. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell says the US economy is sending no signals that the Fed should hurry to continue lowering interest rates. Powell's comments in Dallas yesterday follow two Fed rate cuts since September. New research examines what happens to the human body during exercise. As NPR's Emily Kwong reports, the findings suggest the benefits go beyond bones and the brain and may help the nervous system. Next time you're exercising, thank your motor neurons. Those are the cells in our brain

and spinal cord that make movement possible. MIT's Ritu Raman led a study demonstrating how muscle tissue, when forced to contract, produces biochemical signals that promote nerve growth at the cellular level. And that's good news for those recovering from injury. How exercise can help muscles heal and maybe help you kind of restore your mobility over time. Her research was published in the journal Advanced Healthcare Materials this week. Emily Kwang, NPR News. The northern coast of Honduras continues to see heavy rains from Tropical Storm Sarah. The National Hurricane Center says catastrophic flash flooding and mudslides will continue

there through the weekend. I'm Dave Mattingly in Washington.